Sky lookout support



Feb. 23, 1954 D. A. LEWIS, JR I 2,669,784

SKY LOOKOUT SUPPORT Filed July 15, 1952 5 Sheefcs-Sheet 1 INVENTOR.

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SKY LOCKOUT SUPPORT Filed July 15, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 2 ill-l I mmvroza.

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' SKY LOOKOUT SUPPORT Filed July 15, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 3 120 &

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Feb. 23, 1954 gw s JR 2,669,784

SKY LOOKOUT SUPPORT Filed July 15, 1952 5 Sheets-Sheet 5 INVENTOR. flan/A40 A law/s J:

Patented Feb. 23, 1954 UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE SKY LOOKOUT SUPPORT Donald A. Lewis, Jr., Parma, Ohio Application July 15,1952, Serial No. 299,047

6 Claims. 1

This invention relates to improvements in sky lookout supports, such a support comprising a swivel chair adapted to be bolted to the deck of a ship and carrying binoculars which may be trained upon an airship or other object in the sky, or any object in the water together with means for recording the altitude and azimuth of the operators line of sight when the binoculars are on target.

One of the objects of the invention is the provision of improved means for obtaining the desired readings and communicating them either through an observer or automatically to the fire control station of the ship, or to the pilot, navigator or other officer.

Another object is the provision of means adapted to be actuated by one hand of the operator for locking the chair against horizontal rotation when the binoculars are on target, for swinging the binoculars in the vertical plane to bring them on target in that plane and for operating an on-target signal, leaving his other hand free to perform other duties.

Another object is the provision of means for taking altitude readings that are related to the horizon rather than to the deck of the ship.

Another object is the provision of means for causing the binocular mounting to move with the chair back as the operator tilts it rearwardly, thus maintaining the binoculars always in the correct position. with respect to the operator.

Another object is the provision of means for adjusting the binoculars relative to the chair back in order that they may be placed in the most comfortable. and convenient position for individual operators.

Another object. is the provision of comfortable supporting means for the operators body and head for the purpose of promoting efficiency.

A further object is. the provision of means for registering ona single. instrument the altitude and azimuth of. the target to facilitate reporting its location to the fire control station.

Still another object is. the provision of Selsyn motor means for reporting automatically to a Fig. 3 is a plan view on a larger scale, the view being partially in section on the line 3-3 of Fig. 1, illustrating actuating means for the azimuth indicator.

Fig. 4 is a horizontal sectional View on a larger scale taken substantially 0n the line 4-4 of Fig. 2 and illustrating a braking mechanism which may be employed for locking the support in a iven azimuth position.

Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view taken substantially on the line 5-5 of Fig. 4.

Fig. 6 is a detail perspective View of a. binocular mounting means which may bev employed in connection with the invention.

Fig. 7 is a rear view of the adjustable clamping post of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a plan view of the instrument for registering altitude and azimuth.

Fig. 9 is a wiring diagram.

Fig. 10 is a vertical sectional view through a gyro repeater compass equipped with means for registering azimuth readings transmitted by Selsyn motor means from four different sky lookout. supports or chairs.

Fig. 11 is a plan view of the same on a somewhat smaller scale, and

Fig. 12 is an elevational view of a board on whichis registered altitude readings transmitted by Selsyn motor means from four different lookout supports or chairs.

Fig. 13- is a fragmental elevational view partly in section looking toward the rear and showing on a larger scale the means for actuating the altitude indicating mechanism.

In the drawings there is. illustrated a base plate It! adapted to be bolted to the deck of a ship, and upon which is mounted a vertical casing H1. Braces i2 may be welded to the plate It and the casing i! in order to insure rigidity. The casing H may have internal shoulders for support-,- ing the outer races of ballbearings l3 and 14 adapted to take thrust as welt as radial load. In these bearings there is mounted a post. l5 which extends upwardly beyond the top of casing H and carries at its upper end a casting 16 upon which the seat ll of a swivel chair is fixed.

Casting t6. comp-rises parallel side members l8 between which. is mounted a stamping [9 that is adapted to swing through a limited angle about a pivot 2i. by the casting. In th stamping i9 there are transversely spaced brackets 2| in which the side stiles 22. of the chair back are mounted. for adjustment. up and. down- Clamping screws 25; at each side of the chair hold the back 'in selected positions of adjustment to promote comfort of the operator. Gauge plates 2% on the stiles assist in determining when the adjustment on the two sides is even.

A counterbalance spring .25, the efiect of which may be varied by an adjusting wheel it, tends to hold the chair back in the vertical position, but yields to permit the operator to lean rearwardly until the chair back ssumes the angle substantially as shown in broken lines in Fig. 1. Rearward tilting beyond this angle is prevented by suitable means, as for example by bosses 2? on the stamping engaging opposed pins 28 mounted in the side members i it of the casting,

The side stiles 2'2 of the chair back carry arm rests 29 and Gil, and in order that the operator may leave the chair quickly if occasion demands the arm rest is mounted on a vertical pivot 3! whereby it may be swung outwardly. Spring means, not shown, yieldably holds the arm rest in the illustrated. position.

At the upper end or the chair back there is a headrest shown only in Fig. .l, which is mounted on a horizontal pivot it? and yieldably held parallel to the chair bac by a spring indicated at 35. When the chair back is tilted rearwardly the operators line of sight may be further elevated by tilting head to swing the headrest backwardly beyond the tilt of the chair back. The combined back and headrest tilts enable the operator to bring his line of sight up to the zenith if necessary.

Azimuth indication. At the top of the casing i i there is a sheet metal cover 3? which is clamped to the casing by a band 38 or other suitable means. This cover has opposed prongs which enter notches in the inner periphery of a horizon tal spiral gear by which means the gear is held stationary. This gear is enclosed by an annular sheet metal housing it provided with a flange that bears against the post it and is clamped thereto by a ring 513. A ballbearing M is interposed between the annular gear ill and the post iii. 4| at one side is provided with a transverse cylindrical cavity til that receives bushings t5 and ii in. which is iournaled a spindle at that carries an integral spiral pinion 39 which meshes with the spiral gear at. Cable Eli is operatively connected with one end of the spindle. The operator seated in the swivel chair with his feet resting on the deck may kick the chair around to any desired position. When this occurs the housing ll of course moves with the post it, which causes the spindle 58 with its pinion to travel around the fixed gear M. This results in turning the cable 56.

Cable Elli extends upwardly into an instrument 52 which is attached to the chair back, preferably by means of gimbal rings. The shaft of cable 56 extends upwardly into the interior of instrument 52 where, by means of a pair of small gears 53, a gauge hand pointer is rotated to indicate the azimuth of the chair and hence the azimuth of the line of sight of the operator.

Altitude indication. At the rear of the chair there is mounted in suitable bearings a horizontal transverse shaft til, to one end of which is pinned or otherwise secured an arm 5i which extends forward along one side of the chair and then curves around in front of the chair back at a convenient distance therefrom to a point substantially midway between the of the chair back. To counterbalance arm a weight 52 is also pinned to the arm and extends rearwardly of the shaft. Means for disposing a pair of binocu Ian; at the best position for the operator is illustrated particularly in Fig. 6. This mounting involves a split sleeve 6 ioi preferably rectangular cross section secured by suitable means to the extremity of arm SE. The sleeve Fi l receives a that is preferably made hollow in order to conserve weight. Bar may be adjusted lengthwise of sleeve iii toward or away from the chair back, and means are provided for contracting the sleeve after th adjustment is made and holding it in contracted condition in order to lock the bar against accidental movement. A spring clamp 65 of substantially conventional form may be employed for this purpose. To the inner end of bar $5 I attach a second split sleeve iii provided with a similar spring clamp 6%} which receives and holds in elected vertical adjustment a post 69 upon which the upper end of a pair of binoculars iii is mounted.

Any suitable means for releasably gripping the binoculars may be employed. In Fig. "I for this purpose I have shown the upper end of the post formed in two parts notched out to receive between them the hinge ii of the binoculars. One of these parts consists of a block "52 pivoted at E3 to the post proper. A quick acting bolt i4 extends through a bushing it that is threadably mounted in a hole in. the post. An angular slot it is milled into the bushing and a pin i3 is inserted through the slot l8 and driven into a hole in the b .t i l. Handle iii is attached tothe outer end of bolt hi. When these parts have been assembled the bushing is threaded into the hole to the position illustrated. In the use of the clamp the bolt may be pushed in and turned so as to travel in the cam portion of the slot to bear against the lower end of block it for quickly setting the clamp against the hing pin H. The reverse operation of course quickly releases the .inge.

At a snort distance from the binocular mounting a handle 3k? is secured to the arm ii, this handle being thus conveniently disposed to be grasped by the right hand of the operator. 13y movement or this handle up and down the operator may swing the arm 5i upon its shaft 553.

In the instrument 52 there is a small lamp signal, indicated at 8! in Fig. 8, which is con nected by an electric conductor 62 with a pushbutton switch 83 in the rear end of the handle convenient to the operators thumb, a small electric battery 8 3 being mounted on the arm and disposed in the circuit for supplying the necessary small current. When the operator has brought his line of sight onto the target he can operate the switch to indicate to an observer watching the instrument 52 the instant at which altitude and azimuth readings should be taken for transmission to the fire control station.

A brake for holding the chair in a given azimuth position is provided. This brake disposed in the casing ii. In the embodiment illustrated it consists of a pair of internal expanding shoes 86, Fig. i, hinged together at 3?. A coil spring 88 tends to draw the free ends of the shoes toward each other and away from. the brake drum, the latter consisting of an internal cylindrical surface at the top of easing ii. The shoes can be expanded into braking condition. by means of a cam member 3 pivotally mounted at 90 in a U-shaped bracket as attached to the post, the cam member being provided an operating arm 92. A cable 93 extends from this arm and is guided upwardly along one of the side stiles of the chair back to the arm iii, over a pulley 94 carried by the arm and partially around a; curved hub: of a lever 95., towhich is firmly secured. This lever is. pivotally mounted at; 9.6 to, a bracket depending from the arm... The rear end. of the lever is disposed beneath. and close to the handle to so. that the fingers. of operators hand maybe extended underneath the leven. When the operator pulls upwardly on the lever. a p ll. is exerted, on the cable 93 swings the operating arm 92, of the brake into brake setting position. A bail. 921: pivotally mounted on the arm may be swung around beneath the lever 95. to hold, it in brake settin position if desired. It: will. be observed by reference to Fig. l. particularly that; the. cable 9-3 is; uided; along the chair: back to the: top thereof and makes an easy curvearound the. hollow 6.3!... Hence when the. arm Bi swings on its. shaft 60 the cable is not; stressed and. the brake is. um afiected.

It will be noted therefore. that the operator with one hand may swin the rm. 6| to do red elevati n, ay app y the brake and may operate. a signal switch without removing his; hand from. the handle all. In. order tohqld. amt 8i against movement except; when. desired by the operator I provide a manually operable spring detent. 19 mounted on. the chair back and adapted to; take into a notch in a. disk, fixed to. the shaft 60 and adapted preferably to hold the. armin a plane at right angles to the; chair; back.

A bushing 99 is rotatably mounted on shaft. 60. This bushing carries a bracket illil from. which depends a u-shaped member lill. A weight )2 han s. from this Iii-member. The force.- of gravity acting upon weight, 102 serves, to hold the bushing. 99.. against rotation with the shaft.

Surrounding the shaftv 69. there. is.v an annular gear 13 which. is also held against rotation relative to the vertical by means of alien zllfl. attaohed to; the bushing. An annular gear casing lilo surrounds gear 103 and is fastened to arm .61.. Hence it. turns with shaftv 6.0.. In this casing there is. journaled a spindle carrying a. pinion. Hi5 which meshes with gear "13,, and to. this. pinion there is secured one end of. a cable [61 which extends behind the chair bacl: over to the. in.- strument 52 where it carries, a worm 108 that drives a worm gear. Hill. fixed, to the shaft of a. drum llil upon which are engraved degrees. oi are, from. zero to 90..

When the operator tilts. the. cha r back: rearwardly the. weight. Hi2. and associated parts move bodili, with the chair back, but gravity maintains them. in the. vertical position, Consequently the pinion iiili running over the. oeriphjery of. gear lot. turns cable 10.? and produces a reading onthealtitude; drum till. The azimuth pointer 54. may be made of transparentmaterial in order not to. conceal the. drum when. the pointer moves over it.

' In, addition to; the mechanicalmeans for reels.-v tering the. azimuth. andaltitude of the operators line of sight, I provide electrical means which. may be employed for registering, directly in the fire control. station, For this purpose the rotatabl supporting post I05. may carry a sea H which meshes with a gear H3. fixed. totthe shaft of a Selsyn. motor-l it. that is. fixedly mounted on. the casing- H. Home as the post to turns with the chair the rotor of motor H4- is correspond. ingly turned.

(it'l From, the bracket Hill" and attached bushing H9.

there issupporteibst means. of metal straps; i i 5. a Selsymrnotor H6 on. the shatt, of: which. is.

6.. keyed. a gear in which meshes. with a gear Ha thattis keyed. to shaft: 60.. Consequently when the chair back. is tilted rearwardly from a, vertiial p it on. gear Ii! is turned counterclockwise.

as. viewed in Fig. 1,, and also when arm. 61 is swung upwardly toward the zenith, gear H1 is turned counterclockwise. Both of these actions combine to turn. the rotor ofmotor l l'fi through an angle which is the sum of the two. angles; resulting from the tilting of; the chair; back and;

the upwardswinglng of the arm 6 I. The weight of. motor lid of course tends to hold bushing 99 and gear- H33: in the vertical position, but the addition of; weight I02 with. a relatively long sun porting arm is advantageous.

In, the wiring diagram, Fig. 9', the Selsyn; motors H4 and H6; are shown connected to line wires 12E, of a. ships electrical sy tem. using 11.0 v. A... C.v 501637018 currents Power from the same linewires is. taken. by conductors i2 l to Selsyn generators I22. and I123 which. may be located in the fire; controlstation or the shipor: wherever else desired. motor M14 being connected with generator I22, by conductors its and motor H6 being connected with generator 112.3115; conductors. 125., The rotor of each, or the generators is connected by gear' ing with instruments schematically illustrated at and iii] to give readings of azimuth and altitude...

The operatoraiter' making the necessary ad justments in the height of: the chair back: and; mounting means for the binoculars to best: suit. his own proportions: seats himself; in the. chair,

and. when an airplane or other tar et ppears in. the skyhe kicks the chair around to. the ape oroximateazimuth angle. and makes a preliminaryr application of the brake; He; then leans; backaor swings the, arm 6 I or bot-h until his line of sight is at the: altitude; approximately; of: the target. He. then. prooeedsqmore, slowly and more or less; simultaneously to change; both. zenith and altitude adjustments until his line of sight is precisely on the target, whereupon he. depresses. Dushbutton 83. to. indicate tov the observer watch-- ing' the; instrument 5? that the readings are: to be taken and reported to the flrecontrol, station. In case. the Selsyn. motor operated instruments I 26 and i257 are being relied upon. the. operator when:

he; is on target; may signify that fact to the fire control station; by telephone or otherwise.

The. equipment illustrated in Figs. 1o, 11 and 12; may beemployed not; only to give hearings on:

" by providing truev azimuth: hearings on buoys lighthouses or landmarks taken from a plurality of Sky" lookout. stations which bearings canbe usedconnection with the known distance-hep tween. lookout; stations; on. the ship to determine log computation the distance. of the ship from the saidnavigational aid.

This equipment comprises a. compass card. 130

carried. upon; a ring l-tyl which isfiixed. tea gear I33 that is mounted. forfree rotation on a beariii-g ring r33 supported in. a cylindrical housing;

with; a Selsyn motor operatively' associated witleshipfs gyro compass, not shown. Inthe same planewith. the comp ard 1:30 there i a fixed circumscribing, ring or dial 13.9 having the usual. compass divisions, with. the. zero; mark nointing to the bow. of. the. shin.

Within the housing i34 there is a base plate M in the center of which is mounted a jewel MI which supports the lower extremity of a slender post 142 which extends up through center holes in the gear i 32 and card i as and carries at its upper end a pointer I43 which is adapted to turn over the compass card, thus indicating direction both with respect to the card and to the dial [35L A collar M secured to post M2 supports a gear M5 that is secured to the post and by means of which the post may be rotated. Above gear its there is a second gear I46 to which is secured a tubular shaft Ml that surrounds post it? and extends up to a level just beneath the upper end of the post, where it carries a pointer M8 that is likewise adapted to swing above the surface of the compass card. A third gear M2 bears upon gear M6 and has a tubular shaft i543 secured thereto which surrounds shaft Hi? and terminates just below the top of that shaft where it carries a pointer ISL A fourth gear E52 bears upon gear M9 and has a tubular shaft [53 attached thereto which terminates just beneath the upper end of shaft directly above compass card I353, where it carries a pointer Hit. A disk 555 mounted in housing I34 is disposed just above the hub of gear M2 and functions to prevent any appreciable movement of the gears upwardly during severe motion of the ship. A glass I56 mounted in the casing protects the compass card and the various pointers.

Let it be assumed that the ship is provided with four sky lookout supports, two on each side of the ship spaced apart a measured distance, as for example 100 feet. Each of these lookout supports has a Selsyn motor like motor I I Ll previously described, from which a conductor, not shown, extends to a Selsyn generator associated with the casing and indicated diagram matically in that figure as one of the circles numbered l,2, 3 and l, these numbers corresponding to numbers assigned to the different lookout support stations. The rotary shafts of these generators, shown at I51, I58, I59 and ISO, are rotatably mounted in bearings in the base plate Mil. They carry pinions IEI, H52, [63 and its meshing with the gears I52, M5, M6 and it!) respectively, by means of which the post [42 and the different tubular shafts are rotated to register by means of the pointers I43, Hi8, liil and I54, the azimuth bearings taken at the stations of the four lookout supports. The pointers M3, 148, I5! and its are differently colored or bear numbers, so that the lookout station from which they are driven may be readily identified.

-In Fig. 12 there is shown an altitude board having four drums lit, I'H, H2 and I13 visible through windows in board l'l4. These drums are driven by Selsyn motor means embodying Selsyn motors at each of the four stations corresponding to the motor lid of Fig. 2, the drums being operatively connected with four Selsyn generators, not shown, the arrangement and operation of which will be obvious to those skilled in the art.

In the board I'M above each drum there is an electric lamp signal H5, each of which signals may be energized by the observer at one of the four lookout stations, as for example by means of push buttons 83. This board lid may be located on a wall adjacent to the gyro repeater instrument E35 so that the altitude as well as the azimuth of a target viewed from two or more different lookout stations may be communicated simultaneously to a central point of the ship.

In the illustration stations 3 and 4, which may be on the same side of the ship, show azimuth readings of 10 and 20 respectively from due north or about 54 and 64 to the right of the ship's course. The corresponding altitude readings are 25 and 28 respectively. The lookout stations on the opposite side of the ship are assumed to be idle, the altitude readings being zero and the azimuth readings being incidental to the position of the two chairs when the operators left them.

By the application of the Selsyn motor means of Figs. 10, 11 and 12 the readings taken at two or more lookout stations, especially if the binoculars attached to the chairs of those stations be equipped with cross hairs, may be used to determine the true bearings of a navigational aid as well as the bearings of a target.

It should be understood of course that even though a ship is equipped with Selsyn motor means such as described herein, it is nevertheless highly desirable that the mechanical means herein disclosed for registering the altitude and azimuth of a target be provided in addition for emergency use in the event that the ships electric power system should be disabled.

Having thus described my invention, I claim:

1. In a sky look-out support, a seat post mounted to turn about a vertical axis, an operators chair fixedly mounted on the upper end of said post, a housing surrounding and fixed to said post for rotation therewith, a spindle journaled in said housing, operative connections between said post and said spindle for causing the spindle to rotate as the housing turns With said post, a cable attached. to said spindle, an azimuth registering instrument operatively connected with the other end of said cable, and means for mounting said instrument on said chair, whereby the relative angular positions of said housing and said instrument remain the same in all positions of said post.

2. In a sky lookout support, a swivel chair, a transverse shaft iournaled in bearings carried by the chair back, anarm pinned to said shaft extending around in front of the chair back and adapted to receive and hold binoculars, an annular gear loosely surrounding said shaft, gravity means for holding said gear against turning on its axis, a pinion meshing with said gear carried eccentrically by said shaft and bodily rotatable therewith, a cable attached to said pinion and an altitude registering instrument operatively connected with the other end of said cable.

3. In a sky lookout support a swivel chair, a transverse shaft journaled in bearings carried by the chair back, an arm pinned to said shaft ex tending around in front of the chair back and adapted to receive and hold binoculars, an annular element loosely surrounding said shaft, gravity means for holding said element against turning relative to the horizon, a housing carried by said shaft and rotatable therewith, a spindle journaled in said housing, operative connections between said shaft and said spindle for causing the spindle to rotate as the housing turns with said shaft, a cable attached to said spindle, and an altitude registering instrument operatively connected with the other end of said cable.

4:. A sky lookout support as defined in claim 3, wherein said chair back is pivotally mounted at its lower end for movement in a vertical plane, whereby the altitude registering instrument is affectedby the inclination of the chair back as well as by the angular position of said shaft.

5. In a sky lookout support, comprising a seat post, a chair back pivotally mounted thereon, spring means tending to hold said back in a vertical position but yieldable to permit the back to swing downwardly and rearwardly, stop means for limiting the angle of backward tilt, a headrest at the upper end of the chair back pivotally connected with the back for rearward and downward movement, a horizontal transverse shaft journaled at the top of said chair back, a binocular supporting arm attached to said shaft arranged to support binoculars in front of said headrest, a gear loosely surrounding said shaft, gravity responsive means for holding said gear against rotation, a housing carried by said shaft, a pinion carried by said housing and meshing with said gear, whereby rotation of the shaft turns said pinion, an altitude measuring instrument mounted on said chair, a cable attached at one end to said pinion and at the other end to said instrument, whereby an altitude reading on said instrument results from the tilting of said chair back and a further altitude reading is superposed upon said first reading by the swinging of said arm to direct the binoculars onto a target, whereby the operator may adjust his body rearwardly to cause his line of sight to approach the necessary angle when the target is at a relatively low altitude and whereby he may tilt his head further backwardly and downwardly against said headrest to bring his line of sight to the necessary angle when the target approaches a vertical position.

6. In a sky lookout support, a swivel chair, a transverse shaft journaled in bearings. carried by the chair back, an arm pinned to said shaft extending around in front of the chair back and adapted to receive and hold binoculars, a gear keyed to said shaft, a bushing surrounding and loose upon said shaft, a Selsyn motor depending from said bushing, a gear on said Selsyn motor meshing with said shaft gear, a Selsyn generator, electrical connections between said motor and generator, and altitude registering means operated by said Selsyn generator.

DONALD A. LEWIS, JR.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 1,215,425 Sperry Feb. 13, 1917 1,829,614 Schier Oct. 2'7, 1931 2,26 ,249 Granat Nov. 4, 1941 2,369,806 Slonneger Feb. 20, 1945 2,389,352 Hagner Nov. 27, 1945 2,618,696 Oliver Nov. 18, 1952 FOREIGN PATENTS Number Country Date 594,563 France June 27, 1925 

